Mountain of Lies by Jayne Evans
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- Published: 09 February 2023 09 February 2023
Mountain of Lies is the first book I have read by this author. It takes place in the mountains of British Columbia in Canada, which is an unusual setting. The book opens with Mia, a wildlife biologist, pinned under a boulder on an unstable mountainside in the rain, panicking that she is going to die. Then she hears voices. Another rockslide frees her and sends her sliding down the mountain. Remy/Hudson has become separated from his companions, has a large lump on his head and is very keen to play the hero and rescue Mia. She is having none of it. Neither of them are what they say they are – but what are they hiding?
This is a fast-paced thriller with lots of twists along the way. The main characters are engaging and believable, the villains a bit cliched, especially Gio, but the story is entertaining nonetheless. I could have done without the weird creepy smiles Hudson thought would charm Mia. Fortunately, he stops after a while. There are two separate plotlines that seem to completely unconnected, but converge as the story progresses. The ending seemed a bit abrupt, but as this is the first in a series maybe that was deliberate. I’m not normally a fan, but Mia’s dog Neville steals the show.
The Bookseller of Inverness by SG McLean
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- Published: 09 February 2023 09 February 2023
The Bookseller of Inverness is historical fiction at its best. Iain MacGillivray fought at Culloden, was injured but survived and is now running a bookshop in Inverness. He just wants to live quietly and mind his own business. One evening, a customer is searching for a book that had belonged to Lord Lovat, but will not say why. He is reluctant to leave, but is found murdered the next morning with a white cockade beside his body. Iain is surprised when his father turns up as he was presumed dead at Culloden. Hector has to stay out of sight as he would be arrested (or worse) if caught by the redcoats. The missing book contains the names of six traitors, and someone is picking them off one by one. Iain is once again embroiled in intrigue as they try to find the book, work out the code, and warn the others before it is too late.
This story is a masterful blend of fact and fiction. The author’s notes at the end of the book detail just how much research was involved, but it never feels obvious. Shona McLean paints a wonderfully realistic picture of everyday life in mid-eighteenth century Inverness and the surrounding countryside. You feel as if you are there in the middle of it all. The characters are well drawn and entirely believable. I especially liked the curmudgeonly bookbinder Donald Mòr and his cat Morag. The descriptions of his work sound amazing.
I found it hard to read about the occupation of Scotland by the English redcoats and their unnecessarily brutal treatment of the Jacobite sympathisers – as a Scot myself it felt strangely personal. I have not read any other books by Shona McLean, but as I found the Alexander Seaton series already on my kindle, that’s what I’ll be reading next. Thanks to Quercus and NetGalley for a digital copy to review.
No Way Back by JB Turner
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- Published: 07 February 2023 07 February 2023
I received Long Way Home from NetGalley but discovered it was the second book in a new series, so went back to the first book as I like to start at the beginning if at all possible. No Way Back is the first book I have read by this author, although I understand he has written three other series. NYPD detective Jack McNeal initially comes under suspicion when his estranged wife’s body is fished out of the river Potomac in Washington DC. He is not convinced by the verdict of suicide and suspects foul play, but none of the law enforcement agencies will take the investigation any further. Caroline was an investigative journalist with access to the White House, but must have uncovered something that put her in grave danger.
Normally a police officer who plays it by the book (he works in Internal Affairs), his mind unbalanced by grief, he is pushed to the edge and feels he has no choice but to take the law into his own hands. It is dialogue heavy, some of it a bit clunky, and there is quite a lot of unnecessary repetition. Hopefully this will not be a problem in the next book as the new character has now been established. I particularly liked the unflattering portrait the author paints of the president (perhaps based on someone in particular). The ending leaves lots of loose ends and unanswered questions which will presumably be picked up in the next book. No Way Back is not perfect by any means, but I liked the character of Jack McNeal enough to carry on and read Long Way Home.
The Forgotten House on the Moor by Jane Lovering
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- Published: 07 February 2023 07 February 2023
I am a big fan of Jane Lovering’s books and The Forgotten House on the Moor is one of her best. Alice’s husband Grant had walked out six years before to ‘find himself’. When the police knock on her door in the middle of the night, to inform her that he has been killed in an explosion at an isolated farmhouse on the moors, she finds it difficult to understand what he was doing there in the first place. She decides to visit the site, and there she meets Jenna and Max. Jenna had been in a relationship with Grant and was understandably heartbroken. Her brother Max is a psychology professor and owner of Fortune House. Grant had been helping him with his research.
The story is told entirely from Alice’s point of view. She has no confidence in herself. She is intelligent, organised and funny, but is obsessed with her appearance. Max can see her potential and offers her a job. I am not a fan of spooky tales, but this was pitched just right with occasional accounts of paranormal activity at Fortune House scattered through the narrative. Max was more interested in why people believe in ghosts than proving their existence. This is just the backdrop to the story. At the heart of this book are the characters of Alice and Max. They are so well drawn and believable, share a sense of humour, and their relationship develops in a realistic way. My only criticism would be that Alice took such a long time to realise what was staring her in the face – there was nothing wrong with her appearance, and she should grab the opportunity she was being offered with both hands.
Graveyard of Empires by Scott Mariani
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- Published: 06 February 2023 06 February 2023
At a bit of a loose end, Ben learns that an old acquaintance is missing in Afghanistan. Madison Cahill has rashly gone in search of Alexander the Great’s ‘lost city’, carrying on where her late father left off, but has not been in contact with her colleagues in recent weeks. Ben has no choice but to refuse. The Americans have just pulled out, and with the Taliban in control again it would be impossible for him to even get into the country. Next thing he knows, he’s been co-opted by his old SAS colonel and is heading for Afghanistan to rescue a high-level target known only as ‘spartan’. Not best pleased at being given no choice, he decides to use the situation to his advantage.
Nothing goes to plan and he needs all of his skills just to survive, but several chance encounters mean he is not on his own for long. Being in Afghanistan again brings back memories of his time in the military, and how nothing much has changed for the people there. As always, there is a historical element to these stories and quite a lot of detail to impart, which slows down the action for a while and gives the rescue party a chance to catch their breath. This time around (she previously featured in The Bach Manuscript), I found Madison’s gung-ho attitude a bit irritating – she doesn’t seem to appreciate that people are risking their lives to help her.
This is book twenty-six in the series and Ben is now a more mature and thoughtful character than he was at the beginning, but he’s still the one you’d want fighting your corner. Scott Mariani skillfully weaves several plot strands together to give us another fast-paced, action-packed adventure. Looking forward to reading The White Knight later in the year.